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Tuesday, February 14, 2012

I have been very busy since we last talked, very very busy. The good news is that my schedule is going to be much more spacious very soon, which will leave lots of time for blogging! The bad news is that it's because I'm losing my job. My store is closing, and with the way things are looking now, I'm going to have to make do with part-time work for a while.

The best thing to come out of this is that it's kickstarting my aspirations of becoming a real-life photographer! I've invested in some new equipment and I'm going to start looking for clients. I know there's a lot of overlap in the fashion blogging and photography worlds. Are any of you professional photographers, or do you want to be? It's like my dream job, I can't wait!

Anyways, what with the holiday and all, I decided to get all fancied up. Check it:

The dress is from the clearance rack at DEB. I can't resist scrounging for marked-down prom dresses. I'd wear them all the time if that was at all reasonable! And this dumpy cardigan is the one I wear to work almost every day, hence the dumpiness. But the dress is strapless, and it's cold.

Saturday, December 24, 2011

I've been very busy with work and life, but that doesn't mean I've forgotten you all! A lot of days I come home from work and change straight from my work uniform into my pajamas, which doesn't leave a lot of time for outfits and certainly not outfit photos.

Anywho, today being Christmas Eve and all left me with some time on my hands and I managed to squeeze in some photos before the sun disappeared completely!

I feel a little dumpy in my cords, baggy shirt, and oversized coat/blazer. Not to mention these are slippers, not shoes. They are not shoes at all. So, I decided to put on a hat!

What a sour face in this first picture... But it's the only full-body one I ended up with.

I found this amazing coat at a local thrift store. Of course it's four hundred sizes too big, but it works alright.

Check out these earrings! I found them at Earthbound Trading Company, which just opened up in my mall this fall. They have a million different designs like this, it took me forever to choose. You'll see the others I got soon enough.

Saturday, December 3, 2011

I recently won this Shabby Apple pocket-watch necklace in a giveaway on paper doll theory and I received it in the mail a few days ago. I must have given them the wrong shipping address, because the address on the package was one digit off from mine! But luckily the local post office figured out the mix-up and got it to the right mailbox.

I realized the address had been mixed up when I got an order confirmation from Shabby Apple, and I'd like to say that their customer service was excellent. Because the package had already been shipped by the time I contacted them, they encouraged me to contact the post office and see if I could get it that way, but they also offered to send me another necklace as a replacement! How great is that? Ultimately it was delivered to the correct address so I didn't need a replacement, but their dedication to excellent customer service definitely made an impact.

So let's have a look at the thing!

The packaging was rather unimpressive (just a USPS cardboard envelope with the necklace wrapped in bubblewrap inside) but the item itself is very nice. It seems to be very sturdily constructed and without defect. There was this cute fabric tag attached to the necklace with the Shabby Apple logo on it!

The front cover springs opens when you push the button on top, which is very cool. Pulling up and turning this knob allows you to set the time, but here's the hugely disappointing part--it's not a functional clock. It's still a beautiful piece of jewelry, but if I had paid the retail price of $64 for it, I would be pretty upset. There's nothing on the product page to suggest it's not a functional watch. The fact that it has a second hand fooled me into thinking it was real. Oh well.

Another discrepancy with the product page is that the front cover is cut-out, not glass. They also said that the watch face is golden-brown colored glass, when it's actually clear plastic. These are minor variations which don't bother me much at all, and it's still a beautifully-crafted piece of jewelry. The detailing on the watch cover is lovely, as is the back of the watch.

Just look at that intricate engraving! This necklace definitely has that vintage feel that is so cool about a lot of Shabby Apple's merchandise.

I have one last minor complaint--the chain is just barely big enough to get over my head. Now, I've come to realize over the years that my head circumference is slightly larger than average, but I still think it would have been a good idea to put a clasp on it!

Overall I'm still super thrilled to have won this amazing necklace! I haven't been sure exactly how to style it, which is why it hasn't shown up in any outfit posts recently. Any suggestions? I don't have a lot of vintage-y clothing that really suits a piece like this.

Wednesday, November 30, 2011

This sweater was another great steal from my mom's closet. It's soooo cozy and wearing it is like getting a mom-hug all day long! I wear it year-round (I sleep in it a lot) but I thought I'd go festive today with a red skirt and scarf!

I put up my Christmas tree today, so I was feeling especially festive and threw on these adorable snowman earrings that my little brother got me! I love that they're festive, but not too gaudy.

That's a necklace wrapped around my wrist. I found it in an old box in storage and I've been trying to wear it, but it's super long, and the pearl beads are spaced out a lot, so it doesn't go with just anything. I'll figure out the right outfit soon. For now, it's a bracelet.

Lastly, the scarf. This scarf came from Wal-mart, believe it or not! It's wonderful and warm and I can't get enough of it. I love the print, and the fringe, and the color. Who knew!

Monday, November 28, 2011

Just look at these pants! I bought them this spring thinking they'd be a rad addition to my wardrobe, but I've only worn them as pajamas until now. Don't get me wrong, they are amazing for lounging around the house, but they're too cool to keep to myself. My recent shoe purchase (see my last post) inspired me to break them out. I knew they'd look best with heels, but I only have a couple pairs, and none of them were right.

Since I usually wear these as pajamas, I was careful not to wear anything else lounge-y. This is actually the shirt I usually wear to job interviews, and the belt I wear to work most days. The black blouse came from The Black Market, and I've been at a loss trying to work it into my outfits. I experimented with wearing it over just a black bra, since I was admiring lots of people wearing sheer blouses this summer, but it never worked for me. I almost did that with these pants, but then it hit me--I could wear it unbuttoned over another blouse. DUH. I'll be wearing it a lot more often now that I've realized that.

It was a bit chilly when I took these photos. Okay, I'll be honest, it was below freezing. But sometimes you've got to suffer for fashion, or at least for fashion photography. I think my nose was getting red toward the end of the session.

Saturday, November 26, 2011

It's been a crazy week. I've been working full time, I had Thanksgiving with lots of family, and of course Black Friday! Black Friday has been a dark day for me since I've been working in retail for almost five years. I never saw the appeal of battling traffic and crowds and crazy people for mediocre deals I'll probably miss out on anyway. I don't even start Christmas shopping until halfway through December!

But working in retail, especially in a mall, has put me in a beautiful situation. I take the early shift (6:00am this year, 2:30am last year) and I get off just in time to get a little shopping done for myself. I'm already at the mall so I don't have to park during peak hours, and I've been gathering information all morning about where the best deals are.

This year Black Friday happened to fall on my first full-time pay day so I decided to reward myself with a couple things I can wear at work or elsewhere.

I got this skirt from New York & Company--originally $43, and I paid less than $20. It'll be great for work or professional occasions like job interviews or funerals. :P And SURPRISE, I had to get it in a size 0! I haven't worn a 0 since I was in middle school. I wear more like a 4 or 5 these days. Does NY&C run large or does everywhere else I shop run small? I may never find out.

I'm most excited about these shoes I got at Charlotte Russe. There are not a lot of great stores in my mall, so Charlotte Russe ends up being where I shop when I'm bored on breaks. Not my favorite store, but cheap and close. They're running a blanket 30% off promotion for the weekend, which is neat I guess.

These shoes were originally priced at $50, and I paid around $30. Not too bad for a pair of heels that will probably fall apart within the year. I've been lusting after some Jeffrey Campbell Litas like everyone else and their mother, but I'm sadly too poor to ever be able to justify a purchase like that. These booties will sate the urge for a while at least.

I wore them to work today and BOY are my feet sore. I don't wear heels a lot, especially not for 9 hours straight. Maybe my feet will get used to it if I keep doing it.

I'd like to apologize for the lack of outfit posts lately. What with no money and lots of work, I've been uninspired and exhausted all the time. I'm definitely going to be updating the blog less often, but you can count on at least one post per week. Next time I'll have photos of my rad new outfits!

I've been thinking about starting a "shop my closet" store to make a little extra money on the side and clear out some of the clothing and accessories I don't wear as often anymore. Anyone interested?

Monday, November 21, 2011

EEEEEEEEK! I LOVE my new JewelMint earrings! They're amazing, exactly what I wanted. I decided to pair them with this necklace today because silver/silver blue/blue fringe/fringe seemed too good to pass up, but they looked great with all of my necklaces. I was a bit afraid to draw attention away from them with a necklace like this, but I don't think they lost too much of their power.

I've been wearing this corduroy shirt a lot, but did you happen to recognize my corset top from one of my first posts? Of course not, I didn't have any readers back then--just a little over a month ago! Anyway, the cool thing about the top is that it actually has a ruffle bottom that I've tucked into my jeans. I love corset tops, but this one can sometimes be a little too much with the bottom bit showing. So I tucked it in!

I am totally digging my new remote, by the way. It's made it so much easier to narrow my depth of field, and just look at how crisp the focus is! Now I just need to figure out how to stop making surly faces in all of my photographs. That first photo is especially surly!